Language Reference

This reference describes the ik language precisely. It is the authority on syntax and semantics; the Tutorial is the gentler introduction.

The grammar is given informally throughout and in full, as EBNF, in Grammar. Where this text and the EBNF disagree, the EBNF and the compiler are correct.

• Lexical structure
  • Sigils
  • Identifiers
  • Keywords
  • Numeric literals
  • Boolean literals
  • Character literals
  • String literals
  • Comments
  • Whitespace
• Type system
  • Primitive types
  • Fixed-point reals (r8, r16)
  • Arrays
  • Pointer types
  • String types
  • Function types
  • Type compatibility
  • Conversions, literal ranges and truncation
• Memory model
  • The three storage spaces
  • Scalar declarations
  • Pointer declarations
  • String declarations
  • Register aliases
  • Value constants
  • No heap, no hidden copies
• Expressions
  • Primary expressions
  • Operator precedence
  • Arithmetic operators
  • Bitwise operators
  • Comparison operators
  • Logical operators
  • Address-of and dereference
  • Array indexing
  • Function calls
• Statements
  • Variable declarations
  • Assignment
  • Conditionals
  • Switch
  • Loops
  • Return
  • Expression statements
  • Compile-time blocks inside a body
• Functions
  • Declaration
  • The entry point: @main
  • Calling
  • Calling convention
  • Function pointers
  • Recursion and reentrancy
• Interrupts
  • The isr declaration
  • Vector names
  • Enabling an interrupt
  • Sharing data and atomicity
  • Related intrinsics
• Interrupt vector reference
  • How to read this page
  • Vectors by device
• Targets and conditional compilation
  • The target declaration
  • Compile-time conditionals
  • Writing portable modules
• Compiler intrinsics
  • Notes
• Grammar